Chapter 1

Greek Island, hidden harbor on Mediterranean Sea, a week after Iraq

The 'In Memory of Jane' looked to be floating on air as she rode on the sparkling water of the bay. The hidden cove she lay in harbored pirates for centuries and now would hide the watchers.

Through the rugged hills which surrounded the small cove radiated waves of sunshine which, given recent modifications, generated sufficient power for all electronics on the boat. The wave of light highlighted short tough pockets of green fighting for life on the hostile surface of the island and provided contrast to the white and gray landscape.

The Jane was fully topped off with fuel, but would be anchored for the foreseeable future. She had just been drafted into the Lattus Navy as a forward operation base. In fact, the Jane was the navy until the 50 foot sloop tied up to her a few hours ago. She still flew an American flag but with Queen Lisa's ensign underneath.

Sam sat at the computer station on the Jane. His jobs - to monitor the transmission lines and fiber optic cables NATO thought could not be hacked and have one of the watchers send warnings to Lattus if needed - was the main reason this location was chosen. The Atlantean technology's hyper-efficient solar power and storage system meant the Jane's engines and generators would only need to be exercised as a part of the ship's maintenance routine. Almost all power needs could be met through solar generation and an Atlantean water filter would accommodate any need for fresh water.

Two other people were to stay on the Jane with Sam. Shea and Aleia would act as guards and take turns learning about how to watch for threats through the monitoring systems. The rest of the crew, along with Omar, would be going back to Lattus for discussions and planning. The crew felt something big was in the air. They needed to see what it was and what to do about it.

The Queen Norse was a pure sailing ship. All rigging and base systems were manual. She was decked out with all modern com gear, radar, GPS, and other equipment to help navigate when not in the triangle, but it was hoped that they could navigate in and out of Lattus with the mental links the crews had with others.

Jeff slipped into the chair next to Sam. "You better take care of my baby while I'm gone. I don't want to come back and see beer cans and used condoms lying all over the place."

He looked at Jeff and shook his head. "Jeff, I'd be afraid to even try anything with those women. One wrong move and I'd become crab meat as they threw pieces of my body over the side."

"I don't know, Sam. You could grow on them. You guys are going to be here for a while."

"Go away, Jeff. I have work to do."

Jeff held up my hands in surrender. "OK, just keep my boat safe."

Brian walked into the cabin. "Dad, quit harassing poor Sam. He's gonna be locked up with killers for months on end, besides Bill wants to talk to all of us for a while. Sam, can you break away for a while?"

"I think so, Brian. The system is configuring the new link with NATO on its own. This could take up to an hour. Let's go."

"I thought you were too busy to talk."

"No, Jeff, I was just too busy to get picked on."

On the Queen Norse, a short time later

Bill waited for everyone to get their drinks and find a place in the galley. "Looks like we have another watcher in trouble. We have gotten word that our girl in Cuba is in deep shit. She was kidnapped by the Cuban resistance out of Miami. They're getting support from someone in the US government. We're going back to Lattus to regroup.

"This may or may not have anything to do with the dirty half dozen, but because Uncle Sam is involved we need to be sure of ourselves. I think we all agree we don't want to do anything to hurt the United States."

I looked around the room and saw looks of concern on the faces around me. "When do we ship out?"

Bill answered, "With the morning tide."

Caribbean Sea three days later

To look at the two women sunning on the forecastle, it would be impossible to not believe them to be twins. "Mother and daughter, hey I didn't fall off the turnip truck yesterday!" was the most common reaction when Paul would tell strangers that they are his wife and daughter. From the wheel of their new 68-ft schooner, he looked at them with an almost reverent awe.

They were under full sail before the wind on their first deep-water sail with the Cassandra II or C-2 for short. Sometime that morning, they crossed that magical line between the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea. As the sound of the wind mingled with the gentle splash of the hull cutting through the well-behaved waves, all that could be seen was the water of the western Caribbean. There was no land in sight. No ships, no planes, no people were invading this small cocoon of total family that existed around them. Standing at the wheel, Paul felt a total contentment and peace that could only be called religious. No one could be where he was and not believe in God.

Karen still had the captivating reddish blond hair that he had adored since the 1^st grade in school. She still wore it to the middle of her now 26-inch waist; she had 34-inch hips and breasts to finish out the 5' 10" super wife package that could not be found at Costco. While Karen's hair was attractive, her eyes were captivating. Think of the deepest blue ocean ever seen, oh say, the blue seen in shots of the earth from the moon. Capture that blue, and add to it the reflection of the sun at noon on a clear day, and you could just about visualize her eyes.

Karen's complexion was flawless, and her weeks in classrooms and then in their factory had protected her skin from the aging associated with too much sun. Her skin now, however, reflected a charming brown that offset her other features beautifully. Ever the gentleman, Paul never talked about her lack of tan lines, or how she often forgot to wear her clothes when sun bathing as both she and KT had apparently forgotten again.

They first noticed KT's (short for her namesake, Kathleen Turner) likeness to her mom when she was 6 years old. She grew more and more like Karen as she grew older. KT's relationship with her mother was a combination of mother, best friend, role model, and hero. Paul was able to bask in KT's admiration because Karen and he adored each other. He often believed, KT first thought of him as "if you are good enough for Mom, I will accept you." Now, his relationship with KT was almost as strong as her mother's and hers.

As she grew older she wanted to be a part of everything Karen and Paul did. As a result, they did things as a family. All of them earned advanced degree black belts in Judo, they all jogged 3 miles 5 mornings a week when on land, they all had marksman ratings on the pistol and rifle range, and all loved to sail.

While he looked lovingly at his two shipmates, he noticed a small spec of something floating on the horizon to the port side of the C-2. Thinking it might be some sort of disturbance, he picked up his field glasses to see if he had to alert the girls to put on clothes so they could maintain the claim that they were ladies. He knew better, but he was a big coward when it came to the pretenses his women presented, so he kept his mouth shut.

The spec looked like a Zodiac, a small inflatable raft designed to support an outboard motor, and operate at high speeds. At first, it appeared deserted, but he then saw what looked like a hand lying over the side of the boat. The boat looked dead in the water and there was someone on it, so he felt they should check it out. If nothing else, he would at least get some practice tacking and docking in open seas. He turned to the wind, and the auto sensors in the masts adjusted to maintain full sail. God, technology was great. The computers saved him from actually having to work against the tack. KT designed the sensor systems and the servomotors that operated the sails when set for auto operation, and they worked like a charm. She thought of the idea from an old Popular Mechanic Magazine she found in Paul's dad's basement workshop.

"Hey," he shouted. "You two hussies get some clothes on, we are going to check out that boat off the port side, and I believe there is someone on it!"

Karen and KT both jumped up and ran below to retrieve their swimsuits. Moments later, they emerged, save four very thin strips of cloth, the same way they went down.

"I thought you two were going to put clothes on."

"Oh, screw you Daddy!"

"Karen! Did you hear how your daughter talked to me?"

"Yes, I did. By the way, screw you Hubby!"

"You two are lucky I like semi-attractive redheads, or I would throw both of you overboard."

Together they turned on Paul and hissed, "Don't let your alligator mouth overload your hummingbird ass, boy!"

"OK, I let you two off this time, but I will no longer tolerate insubordination aboard this ship. Do I make myself clear?"

KT looked at her mother, and Karen looked at her daughter. They both smiled an evil smile and slowly started coming after him.

Sometimes a guy can't win, so he handed Karen the binoculars and changed the subject. "Karen, can you make out anything about the Zodiac out there?"

"You messed up our sunbathing for a Zodiac? You jerk; there isn't even anyone in it! You are going to pay big time Paul! Wait a minute, that looks like a hand, but it's not moving. Can we get any more speed out of this can?"

"No, by the time we lower the sails and light off the diesels, we will be there. Why don't you get the bosons hook and drop a ladder over the port side."

The closer they got to the boat, the more it looked like they were going to have trouble. There was a woman in the boat, and she was not moving.

As the C-2 approached, Paul directed the computers to lower the sails. KT and Karen moved to port. Karen reached for the boat and missed. Before anyone could say anything, KT dove into the water and climbed into the boat. Paul grabbed a line and threw it to her. The line fell over the boat, and KT wrapped it around the oar chuck. She looked up from the nude form of an obviously abused woman. "She's alive, but just. Who did this to her? My God, she looks as if someone horse whipped her."

Karen ran aft to where the boat was tied off, and took charge. "We will find out when we get her aboard. Good job of getting to the boat. If we can move her without doing any more damage, we have to get her out of this sun. KT, get back up here. Paul, get in the boat and hand her to KT and me."

He jumped into the boat as KT scrambled back to the C-2. Paul was afraid to touch their new visitor. She was in bad shape. Carefully they lifted her onto the C-2. A whine came from the beautiful damsel, but there was no way to move her without causing some pain. There were welts and cuts all over her body. Where there were no cuts, there were bruises. Someone did not like this lady. She was seriously sun burned all over. Blisters were starting to form where the skin that was normally under a bathing suit was exposed.

They put her in the master cabin because there was more room to nurse her. Paul went back to the wheel and Karen and KT worked to lessen her discomfort. After a while, Karen came back on deck.

"Karen, we need to get to the closest land. I vote for the Cayman Islands."

"Sounds good to me, we are really closer to Cuba, but I really don't want to get into that mess. KT is trying to get some lotion on those burns, but I don't know if Gatorade is going to get enough fluids back into her before we have some real internal damage."

"I would guess we are about 3 hours closer to Cuba than Cayman, but you are right about getting into that mess." Karen leaned into his chest and purred, "That's what I like about you. You always listen to me."

About a half an hour later, Karen moved out of the embrace and opened her eyes. "Wait a minute! Hand me the glasses!"

About that time, all hell broke loose below. The new guest was screaming in Spanish something about death and the ways she was going to cause KT's. Karen quickly jumped the railing and went below. Paul put the system on auto, and followed.

Karen and KT were jabbering in Spanish. From what he could make out the conversation went something like the following.

"Relax, we are your friends. We found you adrift. You are aboard our family sail boat."

The woman was beginning to calm down as she realized there were two women talking to her. She had not noticed Paul in the passageway playing Peeping Tom.

"The American Cubans are after me!" She muttered on, "They will kill anyone who tries to stop them. You are in great danger. You must put me back in the sea!"

KT turned white through her tan, then she turned red. "The hell we will, we put you back in that boat, you die. This family is not going to let that happen. Bring on the ass holes who did this to you!"

"What kind of boat do they have?" Paul broke in from the hatch.

A look of fear came over her face as she curled into a ball.

Karen quickly said in Spanish, "This is my husband. He is the first one to see you. He will not hurt you."

The woman forced a smile on her face as she controlled her fear. "A cabin cruiser with a high mast, with a fishing rig. They have guns!" She replied in perfect English with some kind of beautiful Hispanic accent.

"How many on board? Are they all men? What kind of weapons do they have?" He had to pump her for information quickly, because he did not like what he had seen through the glasses before coming below.

Somehow she kept her wits about her and answered. "Six men only. The have hand held machine guns and shotguns. They are too much for you, and they can outrun a sailboat. You must call for help and put me back."

"You are not leaving this bunk until we reach land and that is that!" Karen put her foot down. "We will be in the Cayman Islands sometime tonight. We will be safe there."

"No, we must go to Cuba, we will be safer there."

In unison all exclaimed, "What? Are you nuts?"

"We are Americans," Paul explained to her. "If we get caught in Cuban waters, we will all go to jail and our boat will belong to Fidel's personal fleet."

"My friends, you will be safe. I am Maria Castro. I am Fidel's kidnapped niece. You will be national heroes."

"Let's talk about it while you get some liquids back into you. You have a bad case of exposure," Karen replied.

"OK, KT you get Maria some Gatorade. Karen, I need your help in the galley. Maria, you try to relax. I am going to contact our State Department and see how best to get you home. Right now, we need to pump you full of fluids."

Paul and Karen left the cabin as KT came back with a fresh load of liquids. "KT, get back out here as soon as you can," he ordered.

They rushed to the back of the cabin and pulled at the bookcase that stood at the aft bulkhead. As the case moved, the not so inconsiderable arsenal of the Cassandra II was reviled.

"I am afraid the bad guys are about to show up. I saw 'em as we were coming below. We don't have enough time to set up the 60's, so we're going to have to do this by hand. You take the grenade launcher and an M16 with extra clips and go forward. Keep weapons out of sight as long as you can." As a second thought he handed her an old Colt 45 automatic. "Hide this somewhere close to you too."

As KT stepped up to the conference, Paul turned to her. "Sweetheart, you take an M16 and a snubbed riot gun. Make sure you have 00 buck in it. Use the 12 gauge only if they attempt to board."

The women of that family came from frontier stock. They picked up their weapons without a sound and started to move out. "Try to keep something between you and the cabin cruiser. I don't want anything to damage my perfect women!" Under happier times, loose objects would be flying in his direction if he had called them 'his perfect women', but things were too serious for that now. They just grinned, walked to him and gave him a kiss. Then they went to their stations.

Paul picked up another shotgun and took it into the main cabin. "Maria, do you know how to use a shotgun?"

She looked at him and her eyes widened at the Browning he was holding. "Yes." She said meekly.

"I'm afraid we will not have time to get into Cuban waters to deliver you to your home. Your friends are on their way to see you. This is an unplugged Browning 12 gauge pump shotgun. Let's review. You keep this end pointed at the door. This is the trigger. This is the safety. When the safety shows red, you can fire. After you fire, pull this back and push it forward. You have a round in the chamber now you have 7 shots. If we are lucky, you won't have to lift the gun off the bed."

"What are you going to do?"

"Well, we are going to explain to these fine outstanding gentlemen that we do things a little differently in Cleveland, Ohio, and that they are not welcome within our sight. If they chose to differ with our wishes, things might get dicey, but hey, no guts, no glory."